The Brickyard 400 returns to Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend for the third year since NASCAR returned to the track’s oval. Bubba Wallace is the reigning winner of the 160-lap race after Kyle Larson won it in 2024.
Ahead of the race, which will air at 2 p.m. on TNT on Sunday, IndyStar caught up with North Central grad Adam Alexander, who’s in his second season as the voice of the NASCAR Cup Series on TNT.
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In-Season Challenge is back
IMS is again the site of the championship round of NASCAR’s In-Season Challenge, which began last year. Created by driver and team owner Denny Hamlin, the In-Season Challenge puts the top 32 drivers in the standings in a five-race, one-on-one bracket (with No. 1 up against No. 32, and so on) that rewards $1 million to the last driver standing.
The tournament is akin to the NBA’s annual NBA Cup, the midseason tournament that began in 2023. For five races throughout the 26-race regular season, drivers can race not only for overall points and wins, but to work toward the prize money for themselves and the team.
“I think it’s great because I feel like it’s something that all sports fans can relate to, certainly as we come to Indiana this weekend and knowing the power of basketball in that state,” Alexander said.
Ryan Blaney and Todd Gilliland have advanced to the championship round in a David vs. Goliath situation. It’s no surprise that Blaney, the 2023 Cup Series champion who won at Atlanta Motor Speedway on July 12, has made it this far in his Team Penske Ford. On the other hand, Gilliland has never won a Cup race and entered the In-Season Challenge as the No. 25 seed. An eighth-place finish in the Window World 450 to outdo Chase Elliott in 17th advanced Gilliland to the championship.
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Gilliland, who recently signed a contract extension with Front Row Motorsports, finished sixth in each of the last two Brickyard 400s. Blaney finished seventh last year and third in 2024.
“There’s no doubt Ryan Blaney is the favorite, and if you were to put money on the guy that’s going to take home the million bucks, Blaney would be the guy,” Alexander said. “But I feel like this is a sneaky good matchup as we get to the final this weekend.”
Hamlin on the hunt
Hamlin, who drives the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota while co-owning 23XI Racing with Michael Jordan, is the odds-on favorite to win the race. Hamlin has four wins this year and is first in the Cup Series standings. Hamlin plans to retire after the 2027 season and has never won a Cup championship, nor has the 45-year-old won the Brickyard 400. He has won the other three NASCAR Crown Jewel (also called Grand Slam) races – the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600 and Southern 500.
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“I think the confidence is there, the swagger is there,” Alexander said. “And I really feel like if you want to watch the storyline that could play out and really not only be a big picture storyline because he can finally check the box and get the career Grand Slam, but he can also take another step towards putting himself in position to win the title.”
A win this weekend would set Hamlin up nicely for the postseason NASCAR Chase, with there being only four regular season races to go after the Brickyard 400. The points leader at the conclusion of the regular season enters the Chase with 25 more points than the driver in second, which is equal to the distance between second and sixth.
Hamlin’s pursuit of the championship (and need to hold off Tyler Reddick, Blaney and others to do so) along with $1 million being on the line creates plenty of intriguing stories about this year’s Brickyard 400.
Zion Brown is IndyStar’s motorsports reporter. Follow him at @z10nbr0wn. Get IndyStar’s motor sports coverage sent directly to your inbox with our Motor Sports newsletter. Subscribe to the YouTube channel IndyStar TV: IndyCar for a behind-the-scenes look at IndyCar and expert analysis.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: In-Season Challenge’s $1 million, NASCAR championship on the line at Brickyard 400
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